The Interlude
by Basement Cat89
Summary: Lady Montilyet has taken it upon herself to organize a weekly 'Interlude' for her colleagues so they can relax and socialize. Her efforts are thwarted by the reluctance and stubbornness of her colleagues. Inquisitor Trevelyan decides to give her a helping hand in making the Interlude happen, even if it means twisting a few arms.


The Interlude

Once a week in Skyhold, a strange mood would descend onto the castle. It was a strange mood, a dark mood. It was a mood that came from a mixture of good intentions and bad excuses, heated by pride and self-righteousness. Inquisitor Megan Trevelyan could see the telltale signs of that mood coming down. The Commander became less talkative, the Ambassador got _more_ talkative and the Spymaster somehow contrived to do both. It was time for Lady Montilyet's weekly interlude.

The four of them were in the war room, discussing plans, troop movements, expenditures and other such things, but the Inquisitor could sense the tension in the room. She would have to do something about that.

''I believe that is enough for today'' Megan stated, rising from her seat. ''Lady Montilyet, a word if you please'' she added and nodded to Cullen and Leliana, indicating they should leave the room. Leliana exchanged a concerned look with Josephine for a moment, silently offering support. ''I will be near if you need me'' worried blue eyes seemed to say. ''I will be fine'' Josephine mutely replied, as the Inquisitor motioned for her to follow to a corner of the room.

The cause for this sudden concern was due to a particular quirk of the Inquisitor's. She had put a pair of chairs in a corner of the war room, which might sound innocuous, but those two chairs could instill dread even into the Spymaster.

That corner had come to be known as 'the school' and it was only ever used when the Inquisitor was angry because one of her advisors was 'being a counterproductive idiot and needed to be told how to do their job', to quote the lady Inquisitor herself. The others had both 'gone to school', twice in Leliana's case, and both of them had said the same thing: Trevelyan spoke slowly and calmly, but rage was obviously bubbling just below the surface. Leliana had argued with the Inquisitor on her first visit to 'the school' and she had later told Josephine that the she was surprised Trevelyan's glare had not frozen her solid. It took _a lot_ to rattle Leliana.

With these cheerful thoughts in mind, Josephine walked to the corner and took a seat, doing her best to hide her apprehension, and succeeding quite well too. The Inquisitor seemed oddly calm. The Ambassador could not see anger of any kind. Yet. Trevelyan cut straight to the chase. ''I understand you have been organizing tea parties for your fellow advisors. Correct?'' Megan started, sitting down opposite Josephine.

The Antivan was startled. She was getting a sermon over _this_? It seemed very unfair to her, but she restrained herself and merely answered the question. ''Yes, Inquisitor.'' Trevelyan nodded and continued, pulling out a piece of paper as she did so. ''The purpose of this Interlude, as you call it, is to 'connect as colleagues and friends'. Correct?'' The Inquisitor was levelling a perfectly neutral gaze at Josephine, and the Ambassador was not sure what to make of it. Simmering anger, she could handle. This... this was something new, and she was unsure what to expect.

She felt a tad annoyed that the Inquisitor had taken her letter to Leliana. Nevertheless, the ambassador was able to keep her composure and remain as polite as ever. ''That is the objective, yes'' she replied, confusion percolating inside her head. Just where was the Inquisitor going with this?

''I see. Would you say that you have been successful in your efforts, Lady Ambassador?'' Trevelyan asked, her tone still utterly neutral, her expression politely curious and her general posture relaxed. Josephine felt a tinge of irritation as the answer came to her. ''Unfortunately, no. My colleagues have been making excuses not to attend'' She replied, crossing her arms over her chest with a huff. She had thought that Leliana at least would show up, if only to humor her.

''I see'' the Free Marcher said again. ''I believe your idea has merit, Lady Ambassador, but it seems you must consider a different implementation for it'' she continued, her fingers steepled in front of her as she gazed at Josephine. The Antivan stared at the Inquisitor.

''Truly? I... forgive my surprise, Inquisitor. I did not expect to have your support in this.'' She explained carefully, choosing her words with care lest she caused offense. Even for someone with her diplomatic background, the Inquisitor was exceptionally easy to anger. Case in point, she spied an all too familiar furrow in Trevelyan's brow, but the Inquisitor did not comment. Josephine let out an imperceptible sigh of relief.

''What would you suggest, Inquisitor?'' she inquired. For all her irascibility, Trevelyan was an intelligent woman and quite good at manoeuvring people. In fact, Josephine sometimes suspected that her 'rages' were a means of manipulation rather than genuine outbursts. However, she had decided that the benefit of being right did not outweigh the cost of being wrong, so she did not test her little theory.

''Am I correct in assuming that Leliana and Cullen played the 'too busy' card on you?'' Megan asked with the faintest smirk. Josephine huffed again at the thought. ''Indeed they have. They have not worked at this level in this kind of organization before. I have, and I assure you that it is imperative to maintain a good relationship among colleagues.'' Josephine exclaimed, sounding very much like a governess irritated with her charge.

Trevelyan held up a placating hand and continued. ''I believe the medium you have chosen, that is a tea party, is inadequate when it comes to the Commander. He is from Ferelden and I have no doubt he sees this as Orlesian nonsense. You'll need something more, shall we say, sensible.'' She explained, tapping her fingertips together as she did so.

Josephine felt a little stung at the 'Orlesian nonsense' bit, but otherwise she had to admit that the Inquisitor had a point. Commander Cullen had made it very obvious that he considered the whole thing silly and unimportant. ''I see your point, Inquisitor, but I thought it would provide an informal atmosphere for us to relax and chat amicably.'' She defended. 'Also I like tea parties' she thought, but did not say so aloud. She did not need to.

''And you like tea parties?'' Trevelyan teased, causing the Antivan to blush slightly. She quickly reassumed a more serious tone however. ''Perhaps it would be better if you simply had dinner together? A few bottles of wine will relax the atmosphere nicely. The Commander can't dismiss a good square meal as nonsense and they both need to eat, so you can play the 'concern' card on Leliana if need be.'' She explained.

Josephine pondered this for a moment. She had considered it when she first thought of organising the interludes, but it seemed alien to her to have dinner for such an event. Dinners were for conducting business: either impressing potential allies or intimidating potential enemies. At least that was the way it was done in Orlais and Antiva. Dinners were expensive. Tea parties not so much.

'Well, I suppose I could try. Perhaps I could even have it arranged for tomorrow night.'' Josephine said, a determined gleam coming to her eyes. Trevelyan smiled a little and rose. ''That was all I wanted to talk to you about, Lady Montilyet. Have a pleasant day.'' The Inquisitor said and left the room, leaving a very determined Antivan in her wake.

Megan spotted Leliana leaning against the wall on her way out, nodded to her and went about her business. The Spymaster returned to the war room to check on her friend. ''Josie! Are you alright? What did she want?'' the red head asked quickly, rushing to Josephine's side. Josephine was startled from her thoughts. ''Oh! Leliana! I am quite alright, thank you.'' The Antivan reassured her, standing up from her seat.

''I had a very enlightening conversation with the Lady Inquisitor'' she said slyly, and something in her tone made Leliana pause. ''Oh no. I know that look. What are you up to?'' the bard asked with exaggerated suspicion.

Josephine feigned innocence. ''I was just thinking about tomorrow's interlude. I decided to make it a sit down dinner instead.'' She said pleasantly, linking arms with Leliana. ''We just received a dozen bottles of Treviso red from my parents. I am sure you and the Commander will appreciate it.'' She continued, leaning into her friend's shoulder to punctuate her point.

Leliana was beginning to feel decidedly trapped. 'Aah, Josie, I'm sorry but I can't attend tomorrow. I have far too much to do at the moment.'' She tried to decline as gently as she could to spare Josephine's feelings, but to no avail.

''Nonsense! You can spare an hour to have dinner with Cullen and me. Besides, you need to take proper care of yourself. Don't think I haven't noticed how thin you've grown.'' The Antivan chided, poking Leliana in the ribs for good measure. Leliana reflexively cradled the spot Josephine had nudged, color rising to her cheeks at being scolded like a child. She hung her head in defeat.

''Alright. I'll be there. At what time is the interlude?'' she asked and tried not to see the triumphant look on Josephine's face. The Ambassador gave her the details and went off in search of Cullen, determined to get him to attend as well.

She found the Commander in his office and, to her surprise, the Inquisitor and Sera were there too. Cullen had a look of outrage on his face that reminded her of her sister Yvette when she thought their parents were being unfair. ''Oh I'm sorry. I did not mean to interrupt.'' She apologized quickly and made to leave, but the Inquisitor motioned her in. ''Lady Montilyet! I was just telling the Commander about your plans for tomorrow night. Perhaps you can help me to convince him? He is proving reluctant.'' Megan said with the air of someone asking for help in opening a stuck drawer.

The Antivan glanced askance at Sera and the young woman answered the unspoken question. '' Inky wants me to promise Cully that I won't mess with anything while he's off playing with you and Leliana.'' She said bluntly, and her choice of words made both Cullen and Josephine blush.

''That is very considerate of you, Inquisitor'' Josephine replied with a smile, but the Elf went on. ''Yeah, but she also said that if he said no, I could have a pie fight with Iron Bull in here tomorrow night!'' Sera finished gleefully, her eyes alight with mischief at the prospect. Now the Ambassador understood why the Commander had looked so scandalized earlier.

She raised her fingertips to her lips, partly to conceal her amusement at the threat and the Commander's indignation, and then regained her composure enough to speak. ''I take it I can count on your presence tomorrow night then, Commander?'' she asked, her tone the epitome of politeness.

Cullen looked at her with resignation and nodded silently, burying himself in his paperwork once more. Sera pouted for a moment, but perked up after Trevelyan whispered something in her ear. The Elf left the room followed by the Inquisitor and Sera.

''That was a nasty trick, you know. Threatening to unleash Sera and Iron Bull on the poor Commander.'' Josephine half-chided. She felt a little angry for not having thought of that herself, to be honest. ''Oh, it was harmless enough. After all he was forewarned. As for the rest, well I dare say the Commander will not be wanting for topics of conversation at dinner.'' The Inquisitor said with a wink and left a smiling Ambassador to prepare for the following night.

To be continued.


End file.
